Hey, At Least I'm Honest

[fivecats]

Yes, I know there are people along the gulf coast who have lost everything.  Yes, I know there are children starving all around the world.  Yes, I know there are people with dibilatating diseases, people who die unexpectedly in an instant leaving behind stunned, lost loved ones and people who suffer every day in silence while people continue to scorn them for whatever has befallen them.

And, yes, my heart breaks for them as well.

And, every time I see the first episode of a new season of The Amazing Race and I'm not at that starting line, my heart breaks a bit there, too.

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Comments

[drood.livejournal.com]

Can you drive stick shift? Will you do the stunts? Want to enter as a team?

I get teary-eyed during the first episode's opening credits, every season.

Last night's episode wasn't as bad as I feared it would be; I've kind of been dreading this family edition thing. The one thing I didn't like? How every time the Black family appeared (and speaking of that, why couldn't they find a black family with a different surname? It was really unnerving whenever someone would refer to them by their name. Or when Phil stood on the mat and started off, "Black family. . . ."), the soundtrack switched from the usual 'orchestral excitement' music to a funky urban beat.

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

Yes, yes and YES!!!

I even know to check to see if the car takes diesel instead of gasoline when in a foreign country.

(It should be noted, of course, that they've changed the rules such that you have to split up the stunts. After TeamRev went through with the husband doing all but one or two of the stunts, it's now an even 50/50 between the teammates)

I was far happier with last night's Family Edition episode than I was prepared to be. I was expecting it to be awful and, instead, it wasn't so bad. Fun, at times, even. High points included seeing Kevin and Drew (from Season One) as the "frank" vendors [although how only ONE person recognized them is beyond me -- I mean, don't these teams have ALL of the episodes from all of the past seasons taped in case they make it on the show so they can study what was done in the past so they don't make similar mistakes? Or am I the only one that obsessed?] [No need to answer that one, really], the runaway Amish cart and the three macho brothers and the "only speak when spoken to" sister almost getting eliminated. (I wanted them gone far more than the Black family)

The other team with the two young kids are early favorites of mine. I don't expect them to win, but I like their family dynamic. Besides, the daughter reminds me of what Seren must have been like when she was much younger.

I noticed the funky urban beat, too, and thought it was a bit gratuitious and unnecessary. The editors are usually much better at things than that.

Staying in the US for the first leg(s) of the Race was unexpected but very neat. I don't know if the producers are getting afraid of foreign travel, if they're being cheap or they're finally realizing there are more places in the US that can be used and fun than just at the end of The Race.

Personally, I get teary-eyes when I see all of the teams lined up, ready to make that first mad dash to their packs and their first clue. That's when the reality of not being on The Race (again) really hits me.

Oh, and you do realize that applying means we'd have to actually meet to be able to put together a videotape of ourselves. :-)

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[drood.livejournal.com]

I don't expect you to do all the stunts, silly. I meant, "When we come to a detour choice between doing tandem skydiving or searching a hundred square miles of beach with a metal detector, are you going to jump out of the damned airplane with me or am I going to have to kick your wussy girly-man candy ass?"

I liked the Gaghans very much, and I liked the Aiellos (I think it was, with the sons-in-law).

Anyone who prayed or tried to convert truckers, I wished would turn over in the Delaware.

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

Jumping out of an airplane or bungee jumping are two things W-A-A-A-A-Y at the top of my "That Scares the HELL Out of Me" List, but, hey, as I've told Bonn over and over again, this is THE RACE and you do those sorts of things on THE RACE. That's all there is to it. And, in fact, I'd LOVE to do them on The Race.

(Parachuting is now on my list of Things to Do Before I Die, primarily because it does scare the hell out of me anywhere outside of the confines of TAR)

So let's see who would be kicking who's wussy girly-man candy ass out of the plane first. :-)

(The only challenge I'd have a problem with is any sort of weird eating deal. Being a vegetarian for most of my life anything involving eating meat would mess my stomach up for days. My understanding is that they're moving away from that sort of challenge, though, not wanting to do a Fear Factor on the show)

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[drood.livejournal.com]

I can do any eating challenge short of chopped-up-but-still-squirming raw octopus. However, I can't drive stick. And I would kind of balk at diving under ice into frigid water in a speedo. (That octopus/cold water episode in Korea was the worst ever, in terms of challenges.)

[drood.livejournal.com]

And I can't believe no one recognized the Frat Boys either! I kept screaming at the screen, "It's the Frat Boys! It's the Frat Boys!"

And only that the kid from Irritating Italian Family noticed. Bah.

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

Kevin and Drew show up at most of the TARCons, they've been presenters at the Emmys, and no one noticed them. Go figure.

All I can say is it seems the producers of TAR are following the approach that the producers of Survivor take -- mainly pick contestants who have never seen the show before.

Personally, I'd be standing at the starting line with my TWoP TAR shirt on if I could get away with it.

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[velvetink.livejournal.com]

I've only watched a few episodes in no particular order or series. It looks like it might be fun, but not something I'm ever going to get to do so get really annoyed with it and switch it off. Then I start thinking of what I would do with the money it cost etc blah -

[fivecats.livejournal.com]

I was all set to not watch the show at all during the first season. Bonn really wanted to -- and within the first five minutes I was busy trying to convince her that we should apply for the next run. (She finally relented about four years later)

I'm a hopeless TAR addict, what can I say?

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[velvetink.livejournal.com]

No problem, the girl watches it all the time too. She often turns my viewing practices around, and still might on this one too. hehehe